Mitocha Tea Farm: Aged Makibi Kancha Firewood Winter Green Tea

This is an extremely rare style of tea production that lends itself well to ageing as the leaves change very little over time. 

9g 

Learned from the farmers of Asuke Village, in the mountains of Aichi Prefecture, farmer Yuki Kayashita harvests whole branches of tea leaves and steams them in a steamer made from wooden barrels placed over steam created from boiling water with firewood. This firewood ads a beautiful smokey aroma to the resulting dried tea. After steaming for an hour, the leaves are easily separated and removed from their branches. They are then laid out to be dried in the cold, dry winter air and sun.

Steeping notes: 3g | 200ml | 95°C | 5min

• Ingredients: Green tea
• Cultivar: Yabukita
• Harvest: Winter (Dec - Feb)
• Cultivated without use of pesticides / synthetic fertilizers
• Region: Yamazoe Village, Nara

About the farm:   Mitocha tea farm is based in an  abundant area in a village called Yamazoe, Nara prefecture. Hiroki Kayashita started his career as a farmer with his wife in 2013 growing both tea and food produce. After trying the local folk tea "tenbi kamairicha" at a teahouse in Wakayama he decided that he also wanted to produce this tea. Also known as " Kumano Bancha" it is a simple but perfect everyday tea, with a nostalgic and roasted aroma that can be enjoyed across multiple steeps. The owner of the teahouse kindly introduced him to the tea master in Kumano who grew this traditional folk bancha. Even today, Kayashita-san continues to learn from his almost 90-year old master’s tea production every year. Kayashita-san aspires to keep producing this traditional folk tea; a tea that is not overly elegant, but one that has been passed on throughout generations as an everyday tea.